Old villain returns to UC

First, Jerry Krause returned to the United Center for last week's banner ceremony. On Monday, another principal from the dynasty days who occasionally drew boos stopped by.

Jeff Van Gundy, in his first year as coach of the Houston Rockets, was asked if his days as coach of the Knicks entered his mind when he returned. After joking about the "momentous losses," Van Gundy moved into complimentary mode.

"I always had great respect for what they did here," Van Gundy said. "Not only how they were coached, but how they played. They shared the ball, defended. They surrounded their best players with smart, tough players, like [John] Paxson, [Steve] Kerr." . . .

Van Gundy also joked that he isn't an expert on his own team, much less others, so he couldn't judge the Bulls with much authority. But his thoughts seemed to contradict the Bulls' early-season performance.

"Anytime you're a great rebounding team and you block a ton of shots, you've got two things that are constants," he said. "You can protect the basket and rebound the misses. In that way, they're well-constructed. They're long at every position. I would think they'd have every reason to be optimistic to not only make the playoffs but advance in the playoffs as well." . . .

Van Gundy described his broadcasting career thusly: "Arrive an hour and a half [before tipoff], go out there, wing it, get half right, half wrong, go back to the hotel." Sounds like a tough gig to leave. "There are nights I ask myself why I did," he said, smiling. . . .

Jamal Crawford has ditched his Nike shoes after signing a shoe deal with Reebok.